ERIC Number: ED102472
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1974-Aug
Pages: 14
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Self-Control of Mental Distractions.
Schutz, Samuel R.; And Others
This study analyzed the mental distractions of students while reading a text. Ss were asked to press a switch to record mental distractions as they occurred, and a treatment was designed to attempt to reduce the number of distractions. The hypothesis related to the treatment effect was that students given explicit training to reduce distractions would show greater mental concentration than controls that were given familiarity with the textbooks, or experience with distractions self-reporting, or both. Results indicated that the distractions were decreased by the self-reporting procedure and by training in techniques of distraction reduction, but not through familiarity with the text. Questions raised by this study are offered as bases for further research in the area of learning and distraction. (Author/PC)
Descriptors: Attention, Behavior Change, Behavior Development, Conditioning, Performance, Research Projects, Responses, Self Evaluation, Speeches, Students, Training Methods
Samuel R. Schutz, Department of Psychology, Gordon College, Wenham, Massachusetts 01984
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: N/A
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Psychological Association (82nd, New Orleans, Louisiana, August 1974)